Liquor trader network planned through 2025

Updated: 14:58’ - 25/03/2015

With a view to restricting liquor trading and use, ensuring state budget revenues from liquor trading and protecting liquor consumer interests, the Minister of Industry and Trade on March 12 issued Decision No. 2219/QD-BCT to approve the national plan on the liquor trading, distribution and wholesale network through 2025, with a vision toward 2035.

Under the plan, the country will have 249 licensed liquor distributors and 996 licensed liquor wholesalers by 2025; and 264 and 1,056 by 2035, respectively.

An applicant for liquor wholesale license must be a lawfully established enterprise which has made business registration for alcoholic drink wholesale or liquor trading and conducts business at a fixed place with technical and physical foundations meeting fire prevention and environmental protection requirements.

License applicants must also satisfy other conditions on operation network and financial capacity.

Due to the limited number of to-be-granted licenses, the plan states that the number of liquor distribution licenses will be proportional to the national population but must ensure the maximum rate of one license per 400,000 people. Meanwhile, the number of liquor wholesale licenses will be calculated based on the population of each provincial-level administrative unit at the maximum rate of one license per 100,000 people.-